The Curse
by Ponderosa Dreamer
Summary: Hoss and Joe try to protect Ben, but not everything goes exactly as planned...


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The Curse

Ben Cartwright spotted the smoke from a campfire off in the distance. He frowned, hoping that they weren't about to have more problems with squatters. During the height of the migration westward to California, he had been forced to take some strong measures to protect his land from those who would steal it right out from under him, but he had thought those days were long in the past. He rode toward the smudge in the sky, thinking that perhaps some hunter had just wandered onto the Ponderosa by mistake, not realizing he was on private property.

Long years of experience made him wary as he approached the camp. Dismounting, he draped the reins over a bush, knowing that Buck wouldn't wander. As Ben traveled the last few yards on foot, his hand on the gun in his holster, he called out, "Hello, the camp."

As Ben stepped into the clearing, a small dark man stood and waved. "Welcome. Come and sit by my fire."

Ben relaxed slightly as he saw the stranger more clearly. He didn't appear to be armed, and it looked like it had been quite a while since the fellow had seen a decent meal. The man was shorter and slighter than Joe, and wearing clothes that had been worn and patched, and worn again. He spoke with a trace of an accent that Ben couldn't quite place, and seemed friendly enough. 

Ben moved his hand away from his gun before he spoke. "Hello. Do you know that you're camped on private land?"

The man looked surprised. "But I saw no signs, no fences. This is private land?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it's my land. I'm Ben Cartwright, and this is Ponderosa property."

"Forgive me, Mr. Cartwright. I am Dimitri Renkov. I am new to this part of your country, and I did not know that this land was private." Renkov bowed slightly to Ben.

"Well, it's too late for you to move on tonight, but I'll expect you to be on your way in the morning." Ben thought that Renkov seemed harmless, but allowing him to stay would open a can of worms that Ben would rather not deal with.

Renkov's face fell. "I understand. It's just that…I have no money, and nowhere to go." He looked up at Ben. "I will leave your land tomorrow." 

Ben hesitated. This fellow was obviously down on his luck, and he looked like a good strong wind would blow him away. Most people wouldn't hire him, looking the way he did. "Look, have you ever worked with cattle?"

"Cattle? No. I have worked with sheep, though." Renkov stared back at the bigger man, trying to read Cartwright's thoughts.

"I wouldn't brag about that, if I were you. Sheep and sheep men aren't too welcome in these parts. Cattle aren't all that different, though. They're smarter than sheep, but bigger and more ornery. I could use a hand, if you think you can handle the job." Ben wondered what he was getting himself into.

Renkov beamed at him and shook his hand. "Yes, I can handle. You will see, Mr. Cartwright. Dimitri Renkov is good worker."

v v v

Adam showed Dimitri where to stow his things in the bunkhouse. "You can take this bunk over here." He paused, looking over the newcomer. "We pay a fair day's wage for a fair day's work here. The three things my father won't tolerate are laziness, stealing, or drinking on the job." Adam thought to himself that this guy didn't look as though he could do a decent day's work, but Pa had hired him! He stopped again at the door. "The rest of the hands will be back in a while. I'll let you get settled."

Dimitri looked around. The bunkhouse was clean and warm, and if this were any indication, he should get some good meals here, too. He lay back on the bunk and reflected on his good fortune. He'd landed right in the honey pot, this time!

v v v

Adam scowled as he drove the two heifers into the pen. He wiped the sweat and dust from his face, and then spotted his brother emerging from the house. "Hoss, who's supposed to be watching that herd down by the creek?"

Hoss looked confused. "I dunno, Adam. I think Pa sent Dimitri down there. Why?"

Ben had heard Adam ride in, and joined them. "What's wrong, Adam? Where did you find these cattle?"

"Wandering along the road! Pa, is Dimitri supposed to be watching the creek meadow?" Adam's anger was plain to see.

Ben was concerned. "I'll take a ride out there and see what's going on." Dimitri's work had been disappointing, to say the least. Ben had tried to make allowances for the fact that the man was unfamiliar with cattle and the countryside, but he should have been making some improvement after two weeks on the job. This just wasn't working out.

Ben had sent Dimitri down to the meadow by the creek thinking that it would be a simple task even for him. The lush grass and abundant water should have made the cattle disinclined to wander, and all he had to do was sit there and watch them. Even someone who was used to herding sheep should be able to handle that!

He scanned the small herd as he rode across the meadow. There were at least three more head missing, besides the ones Adam had found! His temper flared as he looked around for his wayward employee. Where the devil was Dimitri?

Ben's anger turned to alarm when he spotted what looked like a bundle of rags on the ground some distance away. The horse that Dimitri had been riding stood nearby, contentedly chomping on the tender grass. 

Ben knelt next to the smaller man, turning him over. "Dimitri! Are you all right? What happened?" The next moment, the overwhelming odor of liquor told him all he needed to know.

He shook Renkov roughly, recoiling from the stench of stale whisky. "Wake up, man. You're drunk!"

When Dimitri had roused somewhat, Ben pulled him to his feet. "Get on your horse and get back up to the house. I'll have your pay ready by supper, and you can clear out."

Renkov stared up at him, uncomprehending. "Huh?"

"You're fired, Renkov. I won't stand for a hand who gets drunk on the job. I want you out of here right after supper." Ben was furious; after trying to help this man out, _this_ is how he was repaid!

Dimitri started to sober up a bit as Ben's angry words penetrated his alcohol-soaked brain. "Mr. Cartwright. Uh, fired?"

"Fired. It means you don't work here anymore. You can pick up your pay at supper, then you will leave my ranch." Ben mounted his own horse, anxious to be on his way before he lost his temper completely.

Dimitri stared after him as he rode off, muttering to himself, "You will regret this, Ben Cartwright!"

v v v

Hoss wandered down the street, grinning at the luck that had drawn him the job of coming into town to pick up the tools Pa had ordered. A nice cool beer would go down easy while he waited for the order to be gathered and loaded on the buckboard.

Suddenly, a ragged figure stumbled out of the saloon right into Hoss's path. "Whoa, there!" Hoss caught the man before he could fall, startled to recognize him. "Dimitri!" The former hand was very obviously drunk, and had just been thrown out of the saloon.

Dimitri glared up at the son of his ex-employer. "You tell your father, he will regret the day he crossed Dimitri Renkov!"

"Aw, come on, Dimitri. Don't be like that." Hoss tried to assume his customary role of peacemaker. "You knew Pa don't hold with drinkin' on the job. He had to fire ya. It wasn't nothin' personal."

Dimitri pulled away from Hoss's grasp and swayed slightly as he drew himself up to his full height, which was considerably below Hoss's shoulder. "I am Gypsy, and _everything_ is personal! No one fires a Renkov and survives unharmed!" He backed away from Hoss, and a frightening look came over his face as he uttered some words in an unknown language. "I place Gypsy curse on your father. He will know my revenge!"

Hoss stared in amazement as the little man turned and staggered away. A Gypsy curse? Now he'd heard everything! Hoss shook his head as he headed into the saloon.

One of the idlers who frequented the saloon in the afternoons sidled up to Hoss. "Hey, Hoss. What'd yer pa do to rile that Gypsy feller, anyway?"

Hoss took a long pull at his beer. "Fired him."

A prospector who'd been listening joined in. "I sure wouldn't want them Gypsies sore at me! Ya git 'em mad, and they'll put a curse on ya."

Hoss looked over at the prospector curiously. "Yeah, that's what he said, that he put a curse on Pa."

The old man shook his head sadly. "Them Gypsy curses is the worst kind of hexes! I heard tell of a fella out in Californy got a curse on him, and weren't two weeks later his diggin' fell in on him. All ya could see was his boots stickin' out of a pile of rocks."

"And last summer, them poor folks over by Placerville. They run some Gypsies off their land, and got cursed. Next thing ya know, mountain lion got the whole family." The first barfly contributed his story. "Hoss, if'n I was you, I'd keep a real close eye on yer pa!"

Hoss set his now empty mug on the bar. "Yeah, well, I better pick up that order and head home, or I'll have _Pa _sore at me! That worries me more than a whole tribe of Gypsies." He grinned as he headed for the door.

The barfly shook his finger at Hoss as he left. "Hoss, you mind what we said, now. You tell your pa to watch his step real careful!"

Hoss's grin faded as he drove toward the Ponderosa, thinking about what the men had said. He knew that Pa thought that curses and such were a lot of superstitious nonsense, but the stories he'd heard sure made a body think. Anyway, it couldn't hurt to be extra careful for a while, could it?

By the time he arrived home, Hoss had convinced himself that the threat from the curse was real, and it was up to him to protect Pa. All he had to do was not to let Pa out of his sight, and watch for any danger!

v v v

"A Gypsy curse? Hoss, you gotta be kidding me!" Joe laughed, unable to believe that even Hoss was so gullible.

"Dadburnit, Joe. Just quit laughin' and listen, will ya?" Hoss had managed to corner his younger brother in the barn that evening, and was trying desperately to convince him that the threat from Dimitri's curse was real.

"I'll listen when you start making sense, big brother!" Joe giggled again, shaking his head. "What's gonna happen? The Headless Horseman gonna ride in and grab Pa?"

"This ain't funny, Joe! Them folks in Placerville wish it was a joke." Hoss grabbed Joe's arm as he started to move away. He _had _to get him to take this seriously!

"Placerville? What happened there?" Joe hadn't heard anything about Placerville lately.

"Last summer, some Gypsies got run off a place over there and put a curse on the family. A mountain lion ate all of 'em, even the kids. From what I heard, there wasn't much left." Hoss was slightly encouraged at the fact that Joe was at least standing still now. "And some miner was buried alive in his own digging after he messed with a Gypsy."

Joe eyed his brother skeptically. He didn't believe in curses, but Hoss sure sounded like he knew what he was talking about. "Where'd you hear all this, anyway?"

"In town," Hoss said vaguely. "Ol' Floyd, he saw the miner for himself. Said all you could see was the fella's boots stickin' out. Come on, Joe. You gotta help me. I can't watch Pa around the clock by myself!"

Joe shook his head. "I'm not sayin' I believe in all this curse mumbo-jumbo. But I guess it can't hurt to just keep an eye out for Pa for a while. That's all we're gonna do, right?"

Hoss beamed in relief. "Yep. Just watch out and make sure Pa don't get in any danger!" He clapped his reluctant co-conspirator on the shoulder. "Maybe we oughta get Adam to help, too."

Joe drew back, startled. "Whoa, hold on there, Hoss! Think about that. You're gonna try to convince _Adam? _You just barely convinced me to help you out. There's no way you're gonna get Mr. Practical to go along with this! All he would do is spill the whole thing to Pa and get both of us in trouble."

Hoss's face fell. "Yeah, reckon he would, at that. Okay then, short shanks, it's you 'n' me. I'll take the first watch tonight, and wake you up when it's your turn."

Joe stared for a moment. "You mean…you're gonna keep watch all night?" He hadn't bargained for this!

They started toward the house. "Yeah, Joe. Like I said, we gotta watch Pa every minute, day and night." Hoss saw his father step out on the porch and lean against the post, then pull his hand away, looking closely at it. "Starting now." Hoss took off across the yard, Joe on his heels.

"Pa, what's wrong? What happened?" Hoss and Joe charged up to their father, both asking at once.

"Nothing. Just a splinter. There, it's already out." Ben was startled by the sight of his sons rushing up to him, as if a splinter were a deadly threat. He showed them his hand. "See? It's nothing."

"Yeah, Pa." Joe sounded doubtful, then looked over at Hoss. Maybe there was something to this curse business, after all. They had all leaned against that post countless times, and _now _Pa gets a splinter!

Hoss nodded knowingly. "Pa, you gotta be more careful."

Ben laughed, puzzled at their reaction, which was way out of proportion to the minor incident. "It's just a splinter, boys!" He was still chuckling as he went back inside.

Hoss muttered darkly, "Yeah, just a splinter…this time!"

v v v

Joe jerked awake, roused by the sounds from inside his father's bedroom. Pa was up! He grabbed the chair he had been dozing in and scurried inside his own room, barely in time to avoid being seen in the hall. Darn! He'd tried mightily to stay awake, but he'd fallen asleep just the same. Joe wondered how long he'd been asleep; not long enough, by the way he felt.

He gazed longingly at his own bed, still mussed from when Hoss had awakened him to take his turn on watch at about 2 a.m. If he could just lie down for a minute…no! If he allowed himself that luxury now, he would be out, and Pa would be unguarded. He splashed some water on his face and quickly dressed, before he could be tempted again by the soft, comfortable bed.

As Joe trudged wearily down the stairs, Ben looked up in surprise. His youngest was usually the last up, not the first. "Good morning, Joe. You're up early."

Joe stretched and yawned. "Morning, Pa. Coffee ready?" He really needed it this morning! He saw his father start toward the coffee pot, just as Hoss ambled down the stairs. "Pa, no! I mean…I'll get it." He grabbed the pot just as Ben picked it up. "Ow! That's _hot!_" 

Joe's instinctive reaction to the burning hot pot caused Ben to fumble it. "Joe, look out!" The pot slipped from his hands, turning and spilling its scalding contents in midair. Ben gasped as the hot coffee soaked his shirtsleeve.

Hoss flew the rest of the way down the stairs as the crash of the pot hitting the floor brought Hop Sing from the kitchen. "What going on? What all noise?" The cook's eyes widened as he took in the scene. "Hop Sing make flesh coffee, you throw on floor? Now Hop Sing coffee no good?" 

Ben was trying to dry his shirt with a napkin. "It was an accident, Hop Sing. I dropped the pot." He tried to calm Hop Sing's ruffled temper. "Your coffee is always good. Now, could you get a towel, please, and make some more coffee?"

"Hmph! Hop Sing make more coffee, but you be more careful!" The small man huffed off toward the kitchen, muttering in Chinese.

Hoss inspected his father's arm carefully. "He's right, Pa. You gotta be more careful! That coffee was awful hot. It coulda burned you bad."

Ben looked at his middle son in disbelief. "_I've _got to be more careful? Talk to your younger brother, son. He's the one who tried to grab the pot out of my hand!"

Hoss glared at Joe, who looked embarrassed. "Uh, I was just trying to help," Joe offered lamely.

"What's all the commotion?" Adam joined the three in the dining room. "Pa, what did you do to your arm, and where's the coffee?" He looked around, seeing the coffee pot missing from its accustomed place.

Ben scowled at his two younger sons, noticing that neither one of them appeared to have slept very well, then glanced at his oldest. "Ask your brothers. Now, excuse me. I have to change this shirt!" He stalked up the stairs.

Adam wondered how Joe and Hoss could have put Pa in a foul mood so early in the day. They couldn't have been up for more than a few minutes! "All right, what are you two up to?"

Hoss bent to pick up the pieces of the smashed coffee pot, avoiding his older brother's gaze. "Nothin' Adam."

Adam gave Joe his one-eyebrow-raised stare, usually guaranteed to completely unravel his youngest brother. Joe returned his best wide-eyed innocent look. "What? Pa dropped the coffee pot, that's all!" Joe shook his head in disgust. "Sheesh! How come everyone always figures that it's _my _fault?"

Adam retorted, "Because it usually is!" He turned toward the kitchen, calling out, "Hop Sing, is there any more coffee?"

Hop Sing stuck his head out of the kitchen door, ranting, "Mr. Cahtlight want coffee, Mr. Adam want coffee, Little Joe want coffee, evly body want coffee! Coffee all on floor, you wait!" He threw a towel in Hoss's general direction, and disappeared back into his domain.

Adam sighed and shook his head at his brothers. "Looks like it's gonna be a long day. It's not even seven o'clock yet, and you've already managed to tick off Pa _and _Hop Sing!"

v v v

By mid-afternoon, Adam was certain that his younger brothers were up to something. He had noticed that they seemed almost fanatically attached to Pa, tripping over themselves to make sure that one or the other of them was near their father at all times. He watched them more closely, trying to figure out just what in hell was going on.

Ben grunted in disgust at the broken posts where some cattle had broken through the fence yet again. "We'll need to replace those posts. I'll go pick up those we have behind the barn." He was secretly glad of an excuse to escape his two younger sons. Their hovering was starting to get on his nerves, and he had no idea what was behind it!

Hoss piped up, "I'll go with you, Pa. You might need some help loading those posts."

Ben fixed him with a glare. "I think I can manage to load a few fence posts by myself! You stay here and help your brothers find those cattle." He mounted up and turned toward the ranch house.

After Ben had loaded the last of the posts, he led the team over to the buckboard. One of the horses seemed restless. "Easy, boy." Ben tried to calm the skittish animal.

Hoss watched from the bushes as Pa seemed to have trouble with one of the horses. It was a good thing that he'd followed Pa home! The horse was becoming more agitated, pulling and fighting the halter. Hoss broke from the bushes and ran to help.

The already nervous horse screamed and reared at the sudden movement. Ben dropped the halter rope and backed away from the horse's thrashing hooves, only to collide with something behind him. He turned and got tangled up with Hoss, both of them falling to the ground.

The horse, thoroughly spooked by now, decided he'd had enough of these crazy humans and bolted for the corral gate, which had been left open. Ben sat on the ground and watched, open-mouthed, as half his team disappeared down the road. He slowly turned to his son, who was also sitting and staring after the vanished horse.

Ben spoke slowly and evenly. "Hoss. What. Are. You. Doing. Here?"

Hoss gulped and swallowed before answering. "Uh, I thought you might need some help, Pa."

"Didn't I tell you to stay and help your brothers find those cattle?" Hoss nodded mutely, and Ben continued, his voice gradually rising. "But you came back here anyway. You hid in the bushes. You burst out here and spooked the horse. The horse runs off and is God only knows where by now. It will probably take the rest of the day to find him. On top of that, we can't move those fence posts now, and we will have to spend tomorrow rounding up strays." By now Ben had worked up to a full bellow. "And you seriously consider this HELPING?"

Hoss backed away from his infuriated father. "Uh, I'll go find that horse, Pa!" Right now, he was more scared of Pa than of any old Gypsy curse!

"Yes, you do that. And I'll ride out and see what your brothers and I can do about that fence, with no posts!" Ben stomped into the barn to re-saddle his horse.

v v v

The next morning, Ben slipped out to the barn early, looking forward to a few minutes of solitude while preparing to ride out after the stray cattle. It seemed like he couldn't turn around lately without tripping over Hoss or Joe or both! 

He turned sharply as the barn door opened, but relaxed when he saw that it was only Adam. "Oh, Adam. Morning, son."

"Morning Pa. You know, hiding out here won't work. They'll just find you." Adam couldn't help letting his amusement at the situation show, just a little.

"At least I can get a few minutes peace," Ben grunted. "Adam, do you have any idea what they're up to?"

"Not a clue, Pa. All I can tell is that they're stuck to you like glue, for some reason." Adam had decided that it was futile to try to figure out his younger brothers' usually incomprehensible reasoning, but he was sure that the whole plot would come out in its own good time. Meanwhile, he was just going to sit back and enjoy the show! "I'm just surprised that one or the other of them hasn't turned up yet."

Joe shifted uneasily in the loft. He was just supposed to watch Pa, but he hadn't counted on Adam coming out! The hay tickled his nose, and he fought to suppress a sneeze.

Ben paused and looked up. "What was that?"

Adam wondered if his father was starting to lose his mind, too. "What was what, Pa?"

Ben started toward the ladder. "It sounds like someone's up in the loft."

Joe scrambled away from the edge, trying to hide in the piled hay. His foot slipped and he started to slide toward the edge, the hay tumbling with him.

Ben was on the third step of the ladder when a pile of hay knocked him to the ground. He found himself underneath not only the hay, but also his youngest son. He spit the hay out of his mouth, and then made his displeasure known. "JOSEPH!!" The thunder shook the rafters of the barn.

Joe scrambled to his feet then reached down a hand to help his father up. He started to brush the hay from Ben's clothes, and then thought better of it.

"Joseph, leave me alone!" Ben's voice had that deadly calm tone that was all too familiar to his sons. Joe cringed and backed up a step. "Joseph, why were you in the loft?" Ben's expression warned Joe that his explanation had better be good.

"Uh, well, uh, I was checking the hay?" Joe squirmed as his father's glare pinned him to the spot.

"Checking the hay?" Ben didn't buy that for a minute. "You found it necessary to check the hay at this particular time?"

"Uh, sure Pa. You know, we might have a long ride today, and I wanted to make sure that there would be plenty of hay when we get back." Joe warmed to his explanation as he thought that he just might pull this one off.

His hopes were dashed as his father's face darkened. "Joseph, get in the house."

"But, Pa…"

"Don't argue with me. Just…GET IN THE HOUSE!" Ben wanted his youngest son out of sight before he lost what little control remained to him.

v v v

By the next morning, Ben was sure that if he didn't get a break from his two younger sons, he would lose his mind! Joe and Adam were out making repairs on the fence, and Hoss was cleaning up the remaining mess in the barn. Ben made up his mind that he would have no better opportunity to escape.

Hoss looked up when his father appeared in the barn. "Uh, hi Pa." He still wasn't too sure where he stood with Pa at the moment. "You goin' out?"

Ben sighed. He wondered if whatever plotting was going on was something that Joe had put Hoss up to, or vice versa. "I'm going into town for a while…_alone!"_

"I'll go with you, Pa." Hoss looked anxious. "Just give me a few minutes to finish up here and…"

"NO!" Ben roared. "I'm riding into Virginia City, by myself, and you _don't _need to come with me! Is that understood?"

"Yessir, Pa." Hoss backed up a step at his father's outburst. 

Ben calmed at his son's startled expression. "I don't need a nursemaid, Hoss," he continued in a more reasonable tone. "Just finish up here, then ride out and give Joe and Adam a hand."

Hoss looked uncertain, but nodded. "Okay, Pa."

Ben led his horse out of the barn, mounted up and rode off, determined to enjoy this outing.

Hoss resumed his task, then paused as a thought occurred to him. Pa was going into Virginia City! Dimitri Renkov was in Virginia City! He rushed to saddle Chub as concern for his father's safety drove all other thoughts from his head.

v v v

Hoss nodded in the saddle. He hadn't been getting much sleep the last few nights, and it was catching up to him. He jerked his head up. "Gotta stay awake," he muttered to himself. "Pa in town…Dimitri…" Despite his efforts, his eyes slipped closed again.

Halfway to Virginia City, Ben pulled up. He had the oddest feeling that he was being followed. He looked up the road behind him, then shrugged when he saw nothing out of the ordinary. He rode on for a short distance before stopping again. He was sure he heard another rider behind him!

A couple of moments later, Chub ambled into sight, Hoss slumped in the saddle. At the first sight of Hoss, Ben was alarmed, thinking that he was ill or hurt. He caught Chub's bridle as the horse drew alongside him, then saw that Hoss was sound asleep!

Ben shook his head in disbelief. Hoss had followed him, even when he had been told specifically _not _to, and then he couldn't even stay awake on his horse. Ben climbed to the ground, and tried to wake his sleeping son.

"Hoss. Wake up, son!" Ben was afraid that Hoss would fall from the horse's back as he slept. He reached up and shook his much larger son.

Adam urged Sport forward. He had wondered where Hoss was going when he'd seen his younger brother ride out, looking like he could barely keep his eyes open. When he spotted Pa, Adam figured that this had something to do with Hoss and Joe's inane behavior the past few days. But right now, it looked like Pa was going to need some help with Hoss!

Adam slipped from his saddle and came up behind his father. "Pa, I don't think that's such a good…"

Hoss suddenly turned, snorting. He slipped sideways in the saddle and started to slide toward Ben and Adam. "Huh?"

Ben had looked around, momentarily distracted by Adam, just as Hoss tumbled off Chub's back. Next thing he knew, Ben was flat on his back in the mud, pushed down into it by the combined weight of _both _his older sons! "Adam, get off me!"

"I'd really like to, Pa. But first I have to get Hoss off _me! _Hoss, wake up!" Adam shoved at his bulky brother.

Hoss looked around, wondering for a moment where he was. Oh yeah, he'd been following Pa…Where was Pa? "Pa! You okay?"

"I'm fine, Hoss," Ben sounded a little choked. "Now get up so Adam can get off me!"

Hoss got to his feet and stared down at the tangle of his brother and father in the mud. "Huh? Adam, what're you doin' here?"

"Trying to figure out what you're doing here!" Adam rose and tried to brush some of the mud off himself, with little success.

Ben finally stood, and glared at both of them. "I want to know what _both _of you are doing here! You," he pointed at Adam, "are supposed to be out fixing that fence, and _you," _turning to Hoss, "should be riding out to help him. Since when is your youngest brother is the only one doing what he's told?" 

Adam spoke up first. "I saw Hoss riding out, and younger brother, you didn't look in any shape to be going anywhere. You've been out on your feet for the past couple of days!"

Ben nodded. "Well, that makes sense, at least. More than I can say for most of what's been going on around here lately! All right, Hoss. What's your story?"

Hoss shuffled and looked at the ground for a minute before answering. "Well, when you said you were goin' into town alone, Pa, I just got kinda worried that something could happen."

"You were worried that something could happen? The only thing that happened was that you were asleep in the saddle, and fell off your horse on top of your brother and me!" Ben pulled at his shirt, which was soaked and sticking to him uncomfortably. "Come on. We all better get back to the house and clean up." So much for a quiet day in town, he thought to himself.

v v v

Hoss peered out into the darkened hall. Doggone that Little Joe! Joe was supposed to wake him for his turn on night watch, but had apparently fallen asleep again! "Joe? Ssst, Joe!"

Joe jerked awake, his hand involuntarily tightening on the gun. The blast of the shot shattered the night. Hoss dove for the floor. Joe yelled out, "Who's there?"

Ben woke instantly at the sound of gunfire. In a matter of seconds, he was at the door, the spare gun he kept in the nightstand ready in his hand. "What in …"

Adam emerged from his bedroom, holding a lighted lamp. "What in the hell is going on _now?" _he demanded.

Hoss lit into Joe, yelling, "Dadburnit, Joe. What're ya tryin' to do? I never said nothin' about keepin' a gun…"

"What are you doing, sneaking around in the dark?" Joe was yelling back. "How was I supposed to know it was you?"

"ALL RIGHT! THAT'S ENOUGH! _EVERYONE _BE QUIET!" Ben's roar overpowered the argument between his sons.

Footsteps clattered up the stairs, and Hop Sing appeared, holding a shotgun. "What all noise? Hop Sing wake up, hear shooting and yelling." He looked around, seeing no intruder. "Why this family all clazy? No one sleep, all yell in middle of night. Hop Sing maybe go live with cousin. Cousin family sleep at night, not shoot and yell all time! They let Hop Sing sleep!" The cook snorted his disgust with all of them, then stomped back down the stairs, still ranting in his own language.

Ben's eyes were shooting sparks as he faced all three of his sons. "Now, I want an explanation, a _reasonable _explanation, and I want it NOW!" He fixed his glare on his youngest son first. "Joseph, what were you doing with that gun up here?"

Joe looked at Hoss. "I…I was just keeping watch, Pa." He shifted uncomfortably under his father's unrelenting gaze.

"You were keeping watch against _what?" _Ben didn't let up on him. 

Adam shook his head. Whatever shenanigans Joe and Hoss were cooking up had definitely gone too far now. They were just lucky that someone hadn't been hurt.

"I'm waiting for an answer, Joseph!" Now that the initial anger was starting to wear off, Ben was shaking inside, thinking of what could have happened here. He was determined not to let Hoss or Joe see this, though.

"Uh, well, it was kind of Hoss's idea…" Joe started lamely.

Hoss started toward Joe. "Oh no, ya don't, little brother! I just said to keep a watch. I never said nothin' about no guns! That one was all your idea!"

Ben held his middle son back. "Hoss, just what was Joe supposed to be watching for?" None of this was making any sense to him.

"The curse, Pa." Hoss was shaken by how far out of hand things had gotten. That sure was some powerful curse.

"Curse? What curse?" Ben was more confused than ever.

"The Gypsy curse." Hoss was trying to make his father understand the danger they were in.

Ben sighed. "This sounds like one of those long stories. Everyone downstairs. We're going to get to the bottom of this here and now."

Hoss and Joe looked at one another and trudged down the stairs. Adam turned to head back into his room, only to be brought up short by his father's next words. "You, too, Adam."

"Come on, Pa. Surely you don't think I had anything to do with…"

"Downstairs, Adam. Now." Ben's voice crackled, leaving no room for any argument. Adam sighed and followed his brothers.

Once they were settled in the great room, Ben tried once again to extract a sensible explanation from his sons. "Now, what's this about a curse?"

"The Gypsy curse, Pa." Hoss started to relate the story to Ben. "When you fired Dimitri, he put a curse on you."

"Dimitri was a Gypsy?" Something didn't ring true to Ben. It was unheard of for a Gypsy to travel alone. "Hoss, you know curses are just so much nonsense."

"That's what I thought at first, too, Pa. But look at everything that happened. You got that coffee dumped on you, then the horse spooked when you were hitching the buckboard, then that hay fell. What about when I fell off my horse and landed on you? And now all that, just now upstairs. It's gotta be the curse, Pa!" The events of the past several days had only served to reinforce Hoss's belief in the power of the curse.

Ben rubbed the spot between his eyes that was starting to throb. "Hoss, none of those incidents would have happened if you and your younger brother hadn't been crawling up my backside every minute! The coffee spilled because Joe tried to grab the pot, and you were the one who spooked that horse. Joe was hiding in the loft and knocked the hay down, then slid down along with it! And you fell off your horse because you were too sleepy to stay in the saddle. As for tonight," he turned to his youngest son, "Joseph, you know better than to sleep with a loaded weapon in your hand!"

Joe started to defend himself. "If Hoss hadn't woke me up so sudden…"

"That's not the point!" Ben was getting angry all over again. "You could have shot any one of us before you even knew it! There's no excuse for putting yourself in that position!"

Joe's face fell. "I know, Pa. It was really stupid."

Ben settled down a bit at hearing Joe's admission. "It certainly was. This isn't something I should have to be telling any of you, at your age. You're all more responsible than that." He turned back to Hoss. "I don't want to hear any more about this so-called Gypsy curse. Hoss, tomorrow you'll go into town with me to pick up the supplies. I want to find Renkov so he can tell you that this was all just a bunch of claptrap. Now, we all need to get back to bed, and no one, I repeat, _no one _is to stay up and keep watch. Is that understood?"

Joe and Hoss nodded sheepishly, and slowly disappeared up the stairs. Adam looked after them, a small grin on his face. "You know, they really were worried about you, Pa."

Ben looked over at him, realizing that what Adam said was true. "I know. But really, Adam, a Gypsy curse? That Renkov is no more a Gypsy than I am. Sometimes I think those two will believe anything someone tells them."

Adam couldn't resist a chuckle at that. "Right, Pa. And who hired Renkov in the first place?"

Ben had to give Adam that. "All right. Point taken. Now if we're going to get any work done around here tomorrow, we both better get some sleep."

v v v

Ben headed for the sheriff's office. He had no idea where to start looking for Dimitri Renkov, but figured that Roy Coffee might have some idea where he was.

The sheriff looked up as Ben and Hoss walked in. "Howdy, Ben, Hoss. Ben, I was just gonna send word out that I had one of your hands locked up."

Ben was puzzled. "One of my hands? Nobody was missing this morning. Who is it?"

"Name on the warrant is Wallace Keppel. Don't know what name he gave you. Little fella, real skinny?" Roy had been surprised when the drunk he'd picked up claimed to work for the Ponderosa.

"Sounds like Dimitri, Pa." Hoss was confused. Who was Wallace Keppel?

"That it does, Hoss. I fired a man fitting that description last week, Roy, but the name he gave us was Dimitri Renkov. He claimed to be a Gypsy, but he looked like he was traveling alone." Ben wasn't surprised to hear that the supposed "Gypsy" had turned out to be a fake.

Roy nodded. "He tried that Gypsy routine on me, too. But there's a family of Gypsies in town, and they said he sure wasn't no Gypsy. Turned out he's wanted over in Tylerville for trying to sell some claims that weren't his."

Ben could see that Hoss now realized that Renkov's, or Keppel's, curse was as phony as he was. "Thanks, Roy. That clears up a lot."

Roy shrugged, "Glad I could help." Even if he wasn't sure exactly how!

As they emerged from the office, Ben spotted old Floyd talking to the leader of the Gypsy family. "There he is. That's the fella that got cursed!" Floyd pointed Ben out to the other man.

The Gypsy approached Ben. "Excuse me, Mr. Cartwright. My friend there says you were cursed by this false Gypsy that called himself Renkov. This is a serious matter to us. Could I ask you something?"

Ben hesitated, but saw only concern in the other man's face. "All right."

"Do you remember the exact words he spoke?" 

Ben shook his head. "I didn't hear it. My son was the one who was there."

The Gypsy turned to Hoss expectantly.

Hoss thought back to the day he had run into Dimitri on the street. He would never forget those words, even though he hadn't understood them. He recited the syllables exactly, and was surprised at the grin that broke out on the Gypsy's face.

A few members of the band were near enough to hear and started giggling. The leader heard them and burst out laughing. "Mr. Cartwright, by the age of your son, I think this false curse comes many years too late!"

Ben was now as confused as Hoss. "Sir, just what was that so-called curse?"

The Gypsy leader smiled hugely as he translated it. "In English, it means 'May all your children be born naked!'"

Ben joined the Gypsies in their laughter as Hoss turned bright red.

****

J — The End — J


End file.
